Sunday, December 4, 2011

In a war between the Tea Party and the Occupy Wall Street movement
to capture the hearts of Americans, who wins? According to a new poll,
it’s a draw.

Less than a third of Americans say either movement represents their values, according to a poll released Wednesday (Nov. 16) by the Public Religion Research Institute in partnership with Religion News Service.

One thing, however, is clear: neither movement can make a strong claim
to speak for Americans. Near identical majorities say neither movement
represents their values—57 percent for the Tea Party, and 56 percent for
Occupy Wall Street.

What’s more, one in five Americans say each of the movements has a
negative impact on society, and about four in 10 Americans see both as
largely irrelevant.

“They’re mirror images of each other, but the symmetry at the national
level hides a very different distribution,” said Robert Jones, the
research firm’s CEO. “Support for the Tea Party is more intensely
concentrated among Republicans, but support for the OWS movement is less
intense among Democrats and more evenly spread among other groups.”

The poll—designed to gauge Americans’ views about economic hardship and
the proper responses to it—also revealed some striking divides and
ambivalences, particularly in the way people view opportunity in
America.

A significant majority (eight in 10) believes the gap between rich and
poor has widened during the past 20 years, a finding that held true
across generational, religious and political lines. Nearly half of those
polled believe the American Dream—the idea that if you work hard you’ll
get ahead—once held true but no longer does.

And while two-thirds of Americans agree that the government should do
more to reduce the gap between rich and poor, an even higher proportion
(71 percent) say poor people have become too dependent on government
assistance programs.

If You Like What You're Reading, Share!

They Like Me, They Really Really Like Me!

About Me

To borrow some words from Drake, "I'm more than just a number." But if I WERE a number, it would be 7. Since it's God's number, the 7th day is one to rest, and... well, I think it rocks. But if life were a scale of 1-10, then me being a 7 fits too, because I'm not perfect. But I'm not your average girl, either. :-) I'm 30, a Christ-follower, slightly off kilter (but aren't all "ar-teeests"?), and happily married to Keiron, my solid and strong rock. And Techie-extraordinaire. We are the proud parents of a baby girl, Zoe. Hope you enjoy my rantings, don't take my sarcasm too seriously and know that comments are welcome. Very welcome... ahem, HINT, HINT, HINT! But enough about me, time for this 7 to give it a rest. xoxox

"While reading your blog I often sense a certain amount of conviction on your behalf, which makes me wonder why isn’t everyone reading the blogs of a woman who actually “gets it.”Don, at Minus The Bars"A curious mix of the sacred and profane...too nice for a run of the mill blog? "Joe, my brother, author of The Blog of Blogs"Are you really bored or something?"Joscelyne, my sister"Pretty f****ing intense."Reader Brooke Farmer, on this entry.

"A great outlet for such a prolific mind and an entertaining mix of spirituality and current events."Keiron, my husband, also known on here as K, or my Knight & Sunshine